Alexigraph is not a fashion blog, and I rarely post product reviews here, so this post is a little out of the ordinary for me.  It is not a sponsored post, just an honest review of a service that I thought might be of interest to some of you.

A few years ago, I made the decision only to purchase clothes that are made by people working in safe conditions or that are second-hand (you can read more about my reasons here).  For the most part, it’s been a fun challenge to seek out brands and retailers that meet my standards, and the change has significantly cut down on impulse shopping.

However, there’s one item that has stumped me: the business suit.  I have to wear suits for work, and I haven’t bought a new one in years.  I’ve had a really hard time finding suits that are ethically made, don’t cost a small fortune, and that fit me (I wear petite sizes, so fitting a blazer can be tricky).  Thrift stores haven’t been much help – a full court-appropriate suit in my size is pretty much a consignment store unicorn.

I first heard about Sumissura around two years ago, and the idea intrigued me.  The site allows you to design a suit (or coat, shirt, or other clothing item) by choosing from a variety of options — length, lapel style, number of pockets, button type, and more.  You then submit a series of detailed measurements, and workers in China cut the fabric and sew together your personalized garment.  It arrives at your door in about two weeks.  If it doesn’t fit you perfectly, you take it to a local tailor to have it adjusted and submit the invoice to Sumissura, and they reimburse the cost of alterations up to 25% of the total amount you paid to purchase the suit.  Sumissura makes women’s clothes, but it has a sister brand called Hockerty that makes menswear.

Now, the fact that this company is based in China gave me pause from an ethical standpoint.  But the company swears that its clothes are produced ethically and emphasizes its commitment to ethical standards on its website.  I could find no information to the contrary, so I’m taking the company at its word.  Of course, international shipping is energy intensive, but I know of no similar service in North America.

When I first looked at all the options on Sumissura’s site, I was a little overwhelmed.  There are tons of fabrics, styles, and details available.  I knew I wanted a gray or black suit in wool or a wool blend, so that narrowed my choices a bit.  I ordered five fabric samples for $5, a cost that was credited back to me when I placed my suit order.  I was impressed by the look and feel of the fabric swatches I received, so I took that as a good indicator of the quality of my future suit.  After consulting a scientist friend who works in the fabrics industry, I decided to go with a gray 100% wool option.

I tried to do some research on the trends and merits of suit styles and details, but articles addressing such things for women are hard to come by.  I found a couple of helpful blog posts specifically geared toward women’s suits but many more talking about men’s suiting, including this thorough piece from GQ.  Armed with a greater knowledge of all things suits, I set out to create a gray skirt suit.

I was a little disappointed that I could not find certain quality-related information on the Sumissura site, such as whether the jackets are canvassed or fused and what materials are used for the lining.  Because of the price point of these suits, I’m guessing all the jackets are fused and all the linings are polyester, which is not what I would have preferred, but I can’t be sure.

I chose a shorter length lined jacket with a notch lapel, angled double-welted pockets, and cutaway opening, and a knee-length pencil skirt with two straight double-welted front pockets, a side zipper, and one back pocket.  (Those aren’t all the details I selected, but they’re the ones that stand out.)  I entered my height and weight and made some selections regarding my body shape, and the site generated estimated measurements for me based on my answers.  I then took my own measurements and adjusted the estimates accordingly.

My suit arrived in about two weeks, as promised.  The skirt was too big (I’m not sure if this was a measurement error on my end or a cutting error on their end), and the jacket sleeves were just a little bit longer and looser than I wanted.  The suit looked and felt great, though.  I was relieved, because before placing my order, I had read a number of negative reviews of Sumissura and questioned whether I should risk ordering from the company.  Fortunately, I was pleasantly surprised.

I called a local tailor and scheduled a fitting to get the suit altered.  I emailed Sumissura’s customer service within a week to let them know I’d be making alterations.  I knew from other people’s reviews that it was important to contact the company within seven days, but I couldn’t submit a tailoring invoice that quickly through the website because my tailor is a one-woman show and was quite busy.  I let the company know that it would take her about three weeks to complete the work and give me an invoice.  Customer service was very accommodating, although they told me that the invoice had to be submitted within 30 days of receiving the suit in order to get a cash reimbursement for tailoring; otherwise, I’d get store credit.

The tailor had some concerns about workmanship.  For instance, neither the skirt nor the lining were actually hemmed; the two were just tacked to one another.  In addition, the zipper hadn’t been sewn in quite right so it didn’t lay completely flat.  She also thought the darts on the jacket started too high, but she couldn’t fix that because the dart fabric had been trimmed to about a quarter of an inch so there wasn’t enough fabric to let them out.  I honestly didn’t mind the way the darts looked, so I told her not to worry about that.  I thought her alterations might exceed the reimbursement allowance, but they came in under budget – $55 to slim and shorten the jacket sleeves, take in the waist/hips of the skirt (and fix the zipper in the process), and hem the skirt and lining.  So while it was a little inconvenient to have to take the suit to the tailor and then wait a few weeks to wear it, I didn’t actually have to pay any extra to have a well-fitted suit in the end.

The reimbursement process worked exactly as it should.  I sent a photo of the tailoring invoice and the refund was credited to my card in a little less than a week.  The process was simple and straightforward.  The total cost of my suit was $273.90, which is less than I would have paid at a store like Ann Taylor or J. Crew.

So would I buy another suit from Sumissura?  Yes, although I’d adjust some of my measurements downward given the way the first suit initially ended up fitting me.  I’m not thrilled about the little workmanship issues, but since I know I can have any such issues fixed at no cost to me, they aren’t a big deal.  It’s about time to replace my black pantsuit, so I think I’ll give Sumissura another shot.  Honestly, it’s about the only option I have for ethically made, affordable suits, and I’m pretty pleased with the results.  Oh, and my suit is very comfortable.  The wool fabric is so soft and has just the right amount of give.  It’s a big improvement from the slightly-too-small synthetic suit it’s replacing.

Have you ever purchased a bespoke suit or other customized clothing item?  Do you have a source for ethically manufactured suits?  If so, please tell us in the comments!

For further reading on business professional attire, here’s an article that’s being passed around among female attorneys lately.  It contains some great, timeless advice.

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